So, I can't believe it's been almost two years since I last updated. Seriously, I can only recall it feeling like half a year. Two years or half a one, I guess you all can just come to terms with the fact you can't trust any type of update schedule that I might tell you. Not only that, but I just went back and reread the story. HOLY SHIT! I made so many spelling and grammar errors that it was just very cringe-y. I hope to one day feel motivated enough to proofread those previous train wrecks.

Master of Life and Death

When Omega got to the throne room several minutes later with his patrol companions in tow, it was to see just Solara and Reikoku alone waiting for them. Reikoku was on his throne looking like a stereotypical anime villain as the setting sun cast a shadow over his face. He thought about making a smart remark to the leader about it- he would have had it still been his first day- but the patrol had given him time to think.

He hated that.

His first official mission was soon ahead of him. His 'other' mission wasn't even suppose to escalate the way it did and honestly, it felt strange the more he thought about that fight. He was pulling off moves that he never truly practiced. He had an efficiency with guns and a sword he knew he NEVER possessed. At the time- and even a bit still- he believed thanks fell to his godly enhanced reaction speed but there were little things that stuck out that shouldn't have been so...polished with how they played out.

He was firing pretty damn accurately at fast approaching angelic mecha musumes at distances beyond miles apart using either iron sights or hip firing. His sword movements, while his actions, seemed like attacks that had been practiced for decades. Sure, he had a bit of experience practicing kendo, studying from youtube videos and even adding in some personal bullshittery, but his strokes had never just flowed like that did.

He also noted that he didn't have any kind of PTSD from the battle despite it being a fight to the death in all due respects, nor did he experience any kind of battle shock during the clashes. Those women, for all intents and purposes, were trying to kill him! Sure, he'd defend himself if need be and was sure he'd take a life if he had to but come~ on!~ He didn't even have the jitters he normally got before a big event.

That battle seemed to just go too smoothly for his mentality, like it had handicap rails so he doesn't 'trip'. Thankfully, his master was up ahead and he could hopefully get her brainpower on the mystery for him.

When the Seraph and pair of Harpy Interceptors landed before the leading figures of Synapse, they did they customary bow. Well, Omega still didn't really understand the proper greeting so he just saluted like he was in the Marines. This annoyed the twins but Reikoku didn't seem upset. A hand salute was still a show of respect to authority, even he recognized that despite it being something the Downers made up, so he let it slide.

Solara sighed a little but her face seemed much more sharp than usual, Omega noted. She might be worried about how he'd do on his first 'official' mission. Honestly, what could they have him do that'd top fighting ALL of the rogue angeloids at the same time?

"Omega, as Solara made you aware earlier, you have your first official mission," Reikoku said, finally opening a dialogue. "The Harpies can give me the patrol report but I will need you to carry out a very important armed intervention."

Omega/Lucas blinked a few times in rapid comprehension, understanding what the Sky King meant by 'armed intervention.' It was quite a popular term used in the greatest Gundam iteration ever which happened to be his favorite if one couldn't figure it out- Mobile Suit Gundam 00. Honestly, it had some of the most overpowered Gundams of all the series he knew, save for the Dark Gundam and pretty much anything piloted by Master Asia. Celestial Being sought to end all human conflicts on the planet by performing armed interventions in the name of peace, answering to no authority on Earth and acting in complete neutrality, no matter who was fighting who. It was those four Gundam meisters against the world. If this was anything like what his gut was warning him about despite technically having most of his organs either replaced or flat-out removed for good than he...would carry it out without any problems...weird.

Boy, wasn't that a doozy for him to wrap his head around. He could eat as much as he'd like and the food would be broken down into energy- he didn't have to ever worry about pooping and peeing again. A small part of him felt sad as even though one of the most suffering feelings in the world was having to really use the bathroom to do either #1 or #2, it would lead to one of the greatest feelings in the world as you relieved yourself.

"Omega, you recall what you said to me when I asked how you felt about yourself and the world?" his master asked, her voice steady and seemingly anxious? Still, he thought back to that conversation with clarity as clear as Ozarka water.

"Yes, I remember." Helps that I remember EVERYTHING I've ever done and said up to the little twitches inside the womb. "I said "Honestly, I'm a strange person, Miss. I love fighting and brutal scenes and stuff, yet someday in the future, I want to find a peaceful place, free and safe from the entire world. That sorta makes me love nature as well, cuz I hate all the cities and towns and highways. It's all so frustrating. I try to be a good example of a human, yet the beings around me make it very hard on me. I wish I could just make most of them go away. I wish I could describe myself more, but I really can't. I'm too complicated for myself." Those were my exact words."

She nodded, facial features hardening. "Well, this armed intervention will result in you stepping closer to achieving your ideal world, if just a minute amount. An old piece of Synapsian tech from around eight thousand years ago that we thought lost and destroyed was rediscovered by our scanners in the Middle East. It was discovered and dug up by a U.S. military force when archaeologists had stumbled upon it. Their efforts in moving it accidentally triggered the technology to try and reboot but the power source wasn't strong enough save for sending a signal that we detected. Can you imagine what would happen if our technology got into the hands of the Downers?"

There was a strange, numb feeling spreading throughout my body and it felt like pins and needles poking my face and impaling my gut. Ohhhh God. This first mission is turning out alot like some sci-fi fanfiction. Yeah, I could think of several scenarios. World uses it to verify either extra-terrestrial life or an advanced but extinct human civilization and such thoughts would have huge religious and political impacts. Fear and concern would be the most prevalent but there'd also be nations clamoring for it and if the U.S. won't cede to diplomacy, paranoia of their power growing would be obvious and force nations to attack the U.S. to take that piece of tech for themselves. It'd be a simple escalation of violence until whole wars bloom across the world, possibly even the American mainland.

That thought made him cringe. A big part of him was still an American who loved his nation and had the deepest respect for the men in the military. Many went into the military because they didn't have anywhere else in life to go, either lost or trying to escape a terrible home life. Others enlisted for the paycheck and college grants, others just wanted to live their dreams of flying aircraft or driving a tank, and there were a very few minority who were just sociopaths or born in military families and were expected to follow in their ancestors' footsteps. It was a smelting pot of different backgrounds, both socio-politically and emotionally and yet because of their efforts to provide a safe life for America, there were tens of millions of ungrateful bastards who stomp and burn flags, throw insults or ostracize the soldiers- both veterans and active duty- and demonize them even though billions across the world do enough of that already, hating the soldiers rather than the political leaders who send them to foreign lands whether for justifiable reasons or self-interest. Soldiers coming back into civilian society are mistreated by many, both peoples and groups. The VA is a huge joke, and a large percentage of veterans wound up homeless, come home to cheating spouses, aren't trained adequately for civilian jobs or just not hired, are mocked in the progressive infested colleges by self-serving, egotistical professors and naive students, and many of those soldiers overtime simply end it all with a bullet to their own head or by some other method just to stop the nightmares of PTSD and the cold realization that they can't cope outside of the military.

"Omega."

I look up, unable to hide the conflict in my eyes. This...this was moving way to fast for me. What happened to taking out a few rogue angeloids? Why did something like this have to happen?

"Omega, I understand your conflicted thoughts must be tearing you up inside but this is bigger than just a sense of lingering patriotism. Those soldiers may just be following orders but their actions would cause the collapse of many societies. The loss of a few thousand pale in comparison to tens of millions..if that logic helps your conscience any. It's not just the U.S. troops either. Word is only spreading by mouth right now but it won't be long until someone posts pictures and gets the whole world in an uproar. The Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar is where it's been shipped to to be flown out to mainland U.S.. You will have to destroy all evidence of the technology existing, including eliminating witnesses."

Oh God, her words just replaced the pins in my gut to a fucking brick. I feel like I have to take a huge shit. My heart..my heart is beating normally but it feels like I'm not getting air. Despite the numbness, none of my senses are blurring. Had it not been for the new body, I'm pretty damn sure I'd be having an anxiety attack. Why? Why? Why did it have to be the largest base in Qatar? Last I checked on google out of curiosity due to Obama talking about removing bases and troops, there were about 8,000 troops stationed there. Ohhh shit. I also remember that it was just 32 miles away from Doha, a pretty decent sized city in that country. If I don't retrieve or destroy the technology and...eliminate the witnesses in time, it'd probably be days or weeks before word spreads in the city if some unthinking soldier doesn't post about it online or talk about it over skype.

"Omega, I know this I'm throwing you into the emotional grinder right now but nothing can be done about what has happened, only what will happen. We could send some of the Royal Guard or even the Harpy-Interceptors-"

"-THAN WHY, SOLARA?!" I couldn't help but shout though the woman didn't flinch from the outburst. Of course, given her spoken sentiments, she more than likely expected such an outburst. I stumble with some words to start again but couldn't, only meekly forcing out a "...why?" to the woman who'd given me my wings.

The woman who I had willingly enslaved myself to knelt down and wrapped her hands around my head, bringing it into a gentle hug against her chest. I couldn't help the few bits of moisture collecting in my shut eye lids, leaking down my cheeks. A soft embrace was unfortunately one of my greatest weaknesses. Despite any mental bordering I do, a soft hug and voice would force emotions out. How I hated tears. I hated them, I HATED THEM!

"Lucas," she spoke in a gentle voice. "It's because these are soldiers you admire that I'm ordering you to do this. If I send any others, those soldiers who you respect so much would be killed by entities far more uncaring. I know you would hold a grudge for killing them in such a way. It might just be my different thought process but I think it'd be for the better if they were killed by you. You would not do it out of spite. You'd remember each and every one of them and even if that may haunt you, I know you'd prefer that as a small price to pay for your actions. You wouldn't let them be forgotten. You'd give their deaths a greater meaning then some thoughtless slaughter. I'm certain you'd come up with some way to make it up to their families. I know you'd also come up with some way to punish yourself for your supposed sins."

God, she had me nailed. If I could, I'd just hack into their database to get a profile of each and every serviceman and woman on the base, erase any evidence of the technology, take it and wipe the base out in a single flash of the Zeus Cannon. It'd be quick and painless, and for many, it'd be like watching a bolt of lightning and then nothing. They'd go to Heaven or Hell. There'd be nothing I could do to make up for the number of spouses, sons, daughters, parents and siblings I'd have murdered. Hack into corporations and given each of them a hefty sum of money would be a start, the first step of a thousand miles.

"But Lucas, this wouldn't have had to happen, you know."

What?

"Had the Electronic Warfare, Type-Beta, Nymph, not gone rogue, I could have easily sent her to hack and erase all data of the technology and alter the memories of all the personnel in the base who might have had contact with it, find out who overseas knew of it and sent her to repeat the actions. It would have taken some time but it could have been done without any loss of life. I know not how to recreate her model as she is a design of my former teacher who herself has abandoned Synapse because of the weight of her responsibilities."

I thought her words as a couple of more tears slipped down my cheeks. That's right...Nymph, that blue-haired loli. I remember Beta telling me the origins of the floating kingdom of Synapse, how Reikoku had ordered Nymph to rewrite the humans' minds to develop hundreds of languages so they couldn't coordinate with each other. She...she could definitely have rewritten the memories of 8,000 soldiers if she could create hundreds of languages among hundreds of millions of humans.

And Deidalus...she could have created more of that model of angeloid in the case Nymph was ever destroyed or went rogue.

This really could have been prevented had Deidalus not ran away, had Nymph not went rogue, and had Reikoku not been a jackass to her. I don't have any proof but he totally gives me the vibes of an anime villain...who I happen to be working under. Does that make me a villain, or an anti-hero? I'll be pulling an EMIYA on this mission, to kill thousands to save millions- if not billions from global upheaval and possibly World War III.

God...if you're there...I'm about to do something...that I'm pretty sure will send me to Hell. I don't want to go but...but I think it'd be a fitting punishment for someone who lacks the power to save people who he instead murders. Please...if you understand my plight...just take these souls into your kingdom..and I'll serve a punishment in Hell fitting for all those who might have gone there instead. I'm pretty sure my step-mom would say that's not how you work...maybe I'm just desperately grasping at anything that'd help my mind cope with this. Please Lord...just...know that I am doing this because I believe I truly will save more lives than I'm going to take. Please let these soldiers understand..that they didn't die for nothing...Amen.

Solara lifts my head up a little to give me a soft kiss on the forehead. I can't help but memorize every single piece of sensation I can. I cling to the feeling of maternal love as it's the only thing I can focus on.

"Lucas, I understand this will be very hard on you but you won't be alone. I'll be there with you in heart and mind. I'll give you strength when your arms tremble and your body wants to curl in on itself. I'll hold your wings open should you fall. I'll point your weapons at your targets should your eyes not be capable of looking where you aim. You won't be alone."

Somehow despite not wanting to go through with this, my legs are able to steady themselves and my back rolls back to straighten myself out. My tears have stopped falling but my emotions are still churning. My fingers are grasped by Solara's smaller, softer ones. For some reason, she brings them to her lips and plants a kiss on the fingers hugging her own.

"Go now...Omega. Life and Death are heading there to wait for you. They insisted to be there. You wouldn't have any trouble against modern human militaries, so I'd imagine they'll be there for a different kind of supporting role. You're their master so they simply won't let you be by yourself. While you were on your patrol, we moved Synapse over the country of Qatar. I'll send you information on what the missing technology looks like. They can secure it while you deal with the data and the base. I'll upload a virus to your body that you can insert into any kind of mainframe. If you don't know what to look for, I'll send you a HUD display update so highlight what you'd need to connect with to insert the virus. It'll do its job and erase everything to do with the lost Synapse equipment."

I slowly nod and turn away from her, my wings unfolding. My mind is feeling much like my heart was earlier. I know what must be done but I feel like this shouldn't have had to happen. My fists clench to the point my claws puncture my palms. My teeth grit in emotional frustration. Damn Nymph. Damn that Deidalus! Damn that Tomoki! Those sons of bitches have no care or idea of how much good they could do were they not so comfortable breathing the air in their own asses.

"Remember, Omega," Reikoku called out before I could take off. I paused to hear what he had to tell me. "You'll be saving far more lives doing this than you'll be taking. While I generally look down on them, even I don't condone slaughters with no purpose. I'm making this call because it needs to be made."

The man's voice was stern and steady, none of the emotional sympathy hidden in Solara's. Remembering how Beta said he'd given the order to annihilate the largest culturally significant site in the ancient human world at the time of its construction- undoubtedly resulting in the deaths of tens or hundreds of thousands of lives- he was made of tougher stuff than me.

Strangely enough, the sky king's stance relaxed a little bit. When he spoke, his voice was softer by a small amount. "Perhaps, if they had context, the soldiers there would feel a little better about their deaths if it prevented World War III. Maybe there will be those who would understand and make the same choice as you're making now. They're soldiers, after all. They knew there was a chance they'd give their lives for their country and their beliefs when they became soldiers, just not like this, I'm certain. But in the end, the one who'll have to forgive you to help you overcome the emotional consequences of this act...is yourself. Ghosts of the past can only act as reminders. You're own heart will be your greatest enemy."

Solara gave him a strange look but kept silent. I thought of his words as I jumped off the nearby ledge of the floating palace, letting my speed pick up while my wings instinctively steered me towards the ideal spot of the Synapse border. It briefly opened up for my exit and my body quickly automatically adjusted to the heat of the Middle Eastern desert, though the sun had maybe half an hour of setting before night would overtake the land, bringing about much cooler temperatures.

I could already see the U.S. Air base that was the largest in the region, home to somewhere around 8-10 thousand personnel. It was atleast ten miles out in the distance. I felt them before I saw them but the comforting presence of the two girls who'd been created for me was a pillar of strength for my mind. They'd wrapped themselves around an arm of mine each, their soft hands intertwining with my own. I had to squeeze them, words not really feeling like coming out right now. They understood.

Somehow I knew they understood me more than Reikoku and Solara did.

"Master, we're here for you. We always will be." Life's voice was so caring despite her poisonous beauty shouting the opposite for the shallow hearted and naive people who'd prejudge her by appearances.

"That why we wanted to get this done with as quick as possible." The bright face of Death nuzzled my bicep then she rubbed the port in the back of my neck with her finger which sent a chill through my neck. It felt kind of good. "We've already secured the surrounding air space after hacking their communications and radar. They're looking at ghosts on their screens. All personnel have been confined to the base without their knowing. That will make things easier for us..for you, Master."

I can't help but give a sigh that shakes my chest like a man shivering in a blizzard. My stomach felt sick and there was a sort of nitrogen taste in the back of my throat like I just got a dose of laughing gas from the dentist. Ughh, I really will hurl at this rate.

Thankfully, the two girls help me along, carrying me as my wings lose some life and my body descends. Funnily enough, once flight is achieved, the wings aren't required to flap to maintain lift. Somehow I can still float even if my wings were still, yet it seemed flying was more from something connected with emotions and mindset rather than something actually physics-related.

I wish I could occupy my mind with something more complicated at the moment; anything to delay the inevitable deed I was about to commit. My vision began changing to become more like a HUD from the Metroid Prime games though I didn't have to worry about ammo running out because of bullshit hyper-advanced technology reasons and my shields could tank nuclear blasts that could wipe out small countries each. The main focus though was the scrolling of information that I could read but not really process at the moment with lots of stuff flowing right over my head but it was to the side and I'm guessing it had something to do with objects in my field of vision being quickly scanned, cataloged, and even hacked.

One building in particular was a large hangar with closed doors about half a mile away, sitting big and ugly between the airfield and other more solid structures.

SYNAPSE TECHNOLOGY LOCATED

PRIMARY OBJECTIVES: SECURE TECHNOLOGY. ELIMINATE DATA OF TECHNOLOGY. ELIMINATE WITNESSES.

There was more scanning that highlighted a set of information that seemed to flow through the air towards one of the larger, hardened structures. I don't know what that's suppose to represent, cyborg brain. As if responding to my annoyance, Data flow. Hangar used as quarantined zone while sensors and technicians determine its nature and whether it's safe to move to North American continent. All data gathered has been stored in mainframes within the other building.

Oh, simple enough then. Still, there's a shit ton of things I don't know about, both of Synapse and my own body. I would like to find a manual if I could.

It was with a surge of energy through my wings that I achieved self flight again, much to my surprise.

It was with another strange feeling that I gave them their orders.

"I will upload the virus. You two secure the objective and return to Synapse. I'm going to make this as quick as possible. Understood?" Where did the steel in my voice come from? I gave those orders without shuddering. It's like my body has made itself more ready for this then my mind. What the hell?

"Yes, Master," the sisters replied and took off towards the hangar. I didn't even get halfway to the building before flashes went off inside the hangar after the two crashed through it with their bodies like it was made of wet toilet paper. What happened next, I didn't know but a black dome enveloped the entire building. It was beyond the color of black and more like the very concept of darkness. I was sure that if I ever saw a black hole, it'd be as dark as that dome, whatever the hell Life and Death were doing. It was only a few seconds later that my HUD signaled that the first objective was complete already.

Well, let's...get this done with. Strange, my body doesn't feel sick anymore. Is this something common among soldiers who're in a mission or about to be in a firefight? I've never been in a battle of this nature before as I wasn't in any military branch yet this feeling contradicted almost all of what I'd heard and seen from interviews and documentaries. Could it be that I might be a 2 Percenter- one of those very few who are able to kill someone and not be affected? Wouldn't I have to already do that to find out or did my huge amount of guilty beforehand substitute the actual action?

Well, I was now over the building where the data was stored and I didn't have any way of getting in undetected. If I had to kill this base, I'd wanted to do it while everyone was unaware. A part of me felt it was for my own sanity while another was disgusted, wanting to have the base at full alarm so that these men and women would have a chance to defend themselves, and a very tiny bit of that very logic had the pipe dream of them succeeding in killing me so I wouldn't live with the turmoil in my heart and mind. I didn't know if that part was the most patriotic or cowardly. Living in Synapse really threw my perspective through a laundry spin cycle. I metaphorically couldn't tell what was up, down, or if the ground was even under my feet.

Well, it seemed there wouldn't be a way to avoid facing off against my own countrymen. The straightest way was down so here I go. Lord, I want to be forgiven but I also want to be punished for what I'm about to do, so I don't know if asking forgiveness would be an insult as well as a lie, or not.

My body dropped down like a rock and in a few seconds, my metallic talons tore through the ceiling, breaking through cement, plaster, conduit pipes and table trays carrying hundreds of individual wires throughout the facility. If you see movies of falling through ceiling and the person comes out clean, either the director was lazy and didn't want to add in that that person would have to get through all of what I just mentioned or it's another confirmation that Hollywood is Hollywood, kids.

My sword cut through the obstacles like Sephiroth's Masamune cuts through fifty foot pieces of debris and it was on a few swings that had me falling right into the crowded room of analysts who'd been working excitedly on the data from their sensors until said censors had been disconnected ten seconds ago and they were just realizing something was wrong.

Upon my crash entrance, the men and couple of women numbered about a dozen and all looked at me with alarm and confusion and one even looked reverent upon seeing my glowing wings...yeah, the feathers were glowing for some reason. How did I not notice that? Anyway, my sword swung out and cut down three unarmed soldiers. The one man's reverence turned to fear. Yeah, that's the face only a monster like me deserves. I'm sorry.

Another swing cut down two more and my left arm grabbed another by the neck and broke it in a split-second. I spun in the air and my feet clamped around the neck of a man each and I didn't even feel the effort that it took to crush their windpipes and spinal column. My left arm whipped out a gun and like Billy the freaking Kid, I gunned down the remaining four. I noticed one of the men wore a blue camo uniform with a single silver star on the collar. I'd just killed a Brigadier General. Most likely, he was the base commander.

General, I'm sorry. It's your duty to protect your country and the men and women who serve under your authority. It must disgust you about my actions, my treason, but I know what's at stake. If I can save my country from World War III at the cost of this base, then I will. Maybe you'd understand that burden of duty better than most, the burden of sacrifice. You may think I know nothing of it when I'm doing the killing but..I feel like I'm sacrificing my humanity to become the necessary monster. The world simply isn't ready for technology on the level of what you've found.

My mind felt disconnected from my body as if everything wasn't moving yet my body still found the will to seemingly move on its own power. My fingers stabbed into the large computer before me and blue, glowing lines like a circulatory system ran along my arms and into the computer. In a second, the virus was uploaded and spreading through every single hardline and wireless device that went through the base's complex, even into the computer systems on the aircraft and vehicles. In a minute, it would piggy back off all the devices to any satellites, basically following the data footsteps of the past few days. Any images and videos would be deleted, as well as all texts, even from the phones of those who received the text. Not even the satellites would survive the surge of malevolent data frying virus cells.

Shouting was heard from above me. That's right, even though I'd killed the people in here...I had went through two other levels. People must have heard the racket and come seen the hole in the floors and ceilings. The probably thought it a meteor or something.

It was with mechanical motions that my body flew through the holes. Unfortunately for one guy who was leaning over it to look up and down, my speeding body hitting his head snapped the neck. I could now hear alarms in the building and it wouldn't be but a minute before they'd discover the assassination and the whole base would be up alert for an enemy they honestly couldn't have imagined facing.

My ascent didn't stop until I was miles above the base. The mission so far had only taken barely a minute. The first two objectives were complete. Now...I just needed to...do it.

Play Fate/Zero ost: This Day and Never Again

My Zeus railgun appeared in my right hand, taking the place of my Sword of Mars. I hovered there silently as my trigger pressed the trigger. Two charges would be enough. Three would be complete overkill.

BEEP!

"Soldiers, Marines and Airmen of the United States." These words came out of my mouth but they didn't feel mine one bit. Why? Where were they coming from?

"I admire your courage but know that you are not murdered in vain or in spite but necessity. Please understand that it is not that I have the right to kill you, but that I do not have the right to let you live."

Sounds epic and familiar and it does a little to ease my mind. Strange, I'd expect my heart to be beating like crazy right now. My mind and body must really be separated or something.

BEEP!

"So it's with this that I consign ten thousand souls to the grave. May you find peace in what lies in death. Goodbye and thank you for your service."

The trigger was released and it was silent to my mind's ears as the world was illuminated by a massive flashbang. When the light died down, the base...was gone. All that remained was a little asphalt from the distant parts of the runways. The ground at impact was just a hole with molten red rock going down as far as I could care to see without zooming in. The buildings near it were fried to a crisp if they hadn't been blown apart by the shockwaves. There were no corpses left. All of them burnt to ashes. Aircraft and tanks were melted chunks of metal glowing red. The very air stank of static discharge and the smell of many things cooking and burning.

End ost.

It was done and yet my body somehow flew up into the sky on its own after that. My body was numb so it must have been an autopilot or something. Was this what Solara was talking about being my pillar of strength or whatever? I'm thankful for this little bit.

Two sets of objects flying through the air latched onto me. They were feminine, womanly bodies: Life and Death. They didn't say anything but put their bodies under my arms and flew us up until the sky opened up like a black void to swallow us. A part of me felt like it should have been Hell swallowing me for what I did, even if it was for the sake of billions of lives. Disappointingly, I knew it wasn't fire and demons waiting for me but a peaceful looking realm of floating islands, half occupied by ruins and the other by ancient Greece mixed with futuristic technology. No of the guards said a word to us as we passed them but they did give me a nod. I'm not sure how to interpret it.

Right now, I just wanted to be away from it all for along time even though the mission only two less than two minutes. It felt like hours.

The two girls brought me before a waiting Solara and Reikoku who hadn't bothered to move from where I last saw them. It seemed they somehow knew it wouldn't take long.

Reikoku waved off the girls' attempts at bowing and they thanked him and continued to support me. I didn't know if I'd be able to stand on my own legs without them. The air looked to be getting sucked into itself if I looked far off into the distance so I tried to focus on the Sky Master instead.

He didn't have a smile, nor did he clap at the success. Instead, he snapped his fingers and a void opened up.

"We called it an 'Extra-dimensional Time Displacement Capsule' but it's been sitting in storage for eons. Time is meaningless inside it and there's alot of places and things in there you can busy yourselves with. I understand the concept of what kind of turmoil you're going through, Omega, so I'm letting your three take as much time off in there as you need to come to terms with your deed. You can even adjust the environment inside to anything from a beach to deep space. Solara also thought having any choice of music from Earth and Synapse's history would be beneficial as well so you can choose something soothing if you're in the mood for it."

I just stared at him as I tried to comprehend that he had a hyperbolic time chamber 3.0 and he wanted me to pretty much spend my recovery period in it so little to no time outside of here will have passed. I had mixed feelings but I could understand and appreciate the sentiment and the opportunity.

With no words I feel I could say to him, I'm thankful that my sweet girls were able to talk for me.

"Thank you for this courtesy, Sky Master," Life spoke, eloquent as always. "As you can see, his body seems to be moving but his mind seems unable to connect with it. His young mind has been quite traumatized but with this capsule, we'll have enough time to help him through it and be ready for future assignments. I'm certain with no doubts that he's thankful for this as well."

Reikoku's brows tightened at the theory of quite the advanced stage of PTSD so soon. Hopefully it was more battle shock than PTSD. Still, he trusted Life's words. He's seen their specs and the relationship they shared with Omega would be symbiotic given time and with this capsule, they'd get that time in a ...timely manner. Oh God, that was an awesome pun but why does Solara look like she want to slap her face? No way they've developed that kind of master/subject relationship.

"Dismissed until he's ready."

With nothing else to say, he turned and left, leaving Solara to give a few parting words to her girls and Omega. She brought his head to her chest for another hug and said a few more words before easing him through the portal which closed after the three angeloids entered. With a sigh, she left as well.

Before leaving, she pulled out a chunk of glowing machinery. It's form spazzed before flickering off, revealing it as a hologram over a regular rock. The 'primary objective' that was to be secured. There was never any lost Synapse technology. The U.S. didn't discover any sort of technology at all. Life and Death were aware of the trickery and would take the truth with them to the end of time.